Google Chrome

My home screen in Google Chrome

Being a bit of a computer/gadget buff, I am part of the continuous search for better pieces of software and hardware.  (Better being defined as closer to my likes and tastes).  For years I have been a fan of Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser.

Sure, like any Microsoft product, it was constantly attacked and criticized.  It had its flaws and its bugs.  It didn't completely implement HTML and CSS coding according to standards.  Security vulnerabilites seemed to be discovered every week or two.

Yet, it seemed to be as fast if not faster than the other competing products.  While I was developing web sites, I downloaded different browsers to see how my HTML work would look and be interpreted.  I found IE to be right up there with Firefox, Safari, Netscape, Opera, etc.

Well, when IE version 7 came along I immediately downloaded it to see what had improved.  To my disappointment, the screen interface had been highly modified and much of the ability to customize and arrange the screen had been removed from the user.

So disenchanted was I, that I uninstalled it, reverting back to IE6.  But, my love affair with IE had ended.  After some testing, I settled on Firefox.  I was able to customize it to look similar to the setup I had used in IE and all was good.

Well, for several months now I have been using a new browser, put out by Google.  It is called Google Chrome and I have to say I think I am beginning to fall in love again.  It is fast and light with a minimalistic interface.

One of my favorite features is the ability to do a search directly from the address bar.  There is no need for another toolbar with a search box in it, everything can be done from the address bar.  The other feature that I really like, though it is different than other browsers, is that nine of my most frequently visited sites are thumbnailed on the page.  These thumbnails are automatically updated with the latest site changes upon visiting that site.

It may be that you're not looking for a new browser or even desire to try one, but if you are "in the market" I'd definitely give this one a look.